SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Two teams from the Deh Cho tested their hockey mettle during the First Nations Cup in Yellowknife over the weekend.

Both the Fort Providence Bulls and Kakisa-Keith's Water Service competed in the tournament from Dec. 14-16.

Kiel Krutko, front left, with the Fort Providence Bulls, chases after the puck during a game against the Ledcor Warriors at the First Nations Cup held in Yellowknife. - Natalie Dunleavy/NNSL photo

Playing in pool A of the A division, the Fort Providence Bulls came out of the round robin play undefeated.

The team's first game was on Friday evening where they faced off against the Ledcor Warriors from Norman Wells and the Sahtu.

For most of the players it was their first skate of the year, said Mike Vandell, the Bulls' captain.

The team was made up of eight players from Fort Providence along with four players from Hay River and Fort Smith who regularly join the team.

"The first game was a bit rough but it got better at the end," said Vandell about the team's performance.

The Bulls beat the Warriors soundly with a score of 8-0.

The Bulls also won both of their games on Saturday taking out the Deline Chiefs by 4-1 and beating the Fort Smith Winterhawks, said Vandell.

"We were going good in the round robin," he said.

The team's luck changed when they faced Inuvik Northwind in the semi-finals.

At the beginning of the game it looked like it would be another win for the Bulls with the team ahead by 4-0 at the end of the second. Then Inuvik came back to tie the score 4-4 at the end of the third. In a shootout, Inuvik won the game 5-4.

"Their legs gave out," said Vandell to explain the loss.

The Bulls placed fourth in the A division against a total of eight teams. First place went to Inuvik Northwind with the Yellowknife Diavik Chiefs taking second and the Fort Smith Winterhawks taking third.

Overall the team performed well, he said.

"The team did really good for the first time on the ice for half the team" said Vandell.

A lot of credit has to be given to the Bull's goalie, Lance Lennie, who made a lot of good saves, Vandell said.

He added without Lennie between the pipes the goals against them would have been "ugly."

All the players are looking forward to competing again in the Kingland Ford tournament in Fort Providence in February, said Vandell.

Out on the ice in the Masters division the Kakisa-Keith's Water Service team had a more laid back approach to the tournament.

The team was made up of Lloyd Chicot, Patrick Chicot and Allan Landry from Kakisa along with a mix of players from communities including Fort Simpson, Yellowknife and Lutsel K'e.

"Whoever was interested in having fun on the ice," said Lloyd Chicot about the team's requirements.

Because many of the players hadn't been on the ice yet this year the team didn't do as well as it hoped, said Chicot.

The Kakisa team didn't win any games but came close on a number of occasions.

Players could almost taste victory in a game against the BHP Ol' Pitbulls.

In the second period Kakisa was ahead by three. Then the Pitbulls made a comeback in the third period scoring a number of goals including one at the last minute to win the game 6-5, said Chicot.

"They tied it and eventually they scored," he said.

Although they didn't win, the team had a lot of fun during the tournament, Chicot said.

The fifth annual First Nations Cup was the largest yet with a total of 17 teams participating in the three divisions, said Greg Hopf, vice-president of the First Nations Cup Association.

Out of the 17 teams, 15 were from outside of Yellowknife, he said.

"It went great," said Hopf about the tournament.